Web safety

Computers store a lot of information about the websites you visit; emails and instant messages you send; web-based phone calls you make; online purchases and banking; and many other activities.

If you are worried that someone might check what you are looking at or doing on this computer, don’t use it to get help and advice. Instead, use a computer somewhere else, for example at a trusted friend’s house or an internet café.

Keep using your computer for your routine activities, such as looking up the weather or checking what’s on TV.

Clearing your web browser’s history

You can clear some evidence of sites you have visited (and any searches you have done) by clearing your web browser’s history.

However, this won’t remove all records from your computer’s memory and someone in your home would not have to be a computer expert to find the remaining records.

Remember

If clearing your browser’s history isn’t something you do regularly, DON’T do it, as this might arouse suspicion.

How to clear your browser history

Internet Explorer (PC): Pull down the Tools menu and select Internet Options. Click on the 'Delete Files' and 'Clear History' buttons on the general page.

Safari (Mac and PC): Pull down the Safari menu, select 'Reset Safari', click on 'Reset'. (Safari also has a 'Private Browsing' option which you can choose before you browse and turn off afterwards. To use this, pull down the Safari menu, select 'Private Browsing', and click OK when you see a confirmation message. To turn private browsing off, choose it from the menu again, and close any windows you’ve used to view private information.)